ASA: Paravertebral Block Ups Breast Cancer Surgery Outcomes

Significant reductions in local and metastatic recurrence, breast cancer-related mortality

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 16 (HealthDay News) -- For patients undergoing breast cancer surgery, paravertebral block combined with general anesthesia is associated with decreased local and metastatic recurrence and lower breast cancer-related mortality, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiologists, held from Oct. 12 to 16 in San Francisco.

To examine whether paravertebral block combined with general anesthesia reduces the risk of breast cancer compared with general anesthesia alone, Asser M. Oppfeldt, M.D., and Palle S. Carlsson, M.D., Ph.D., from the Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark, conducted a follow-up study to a randomized controlled trial. Participants having breast cancer surgery with standardized anesthesia were randomized to receive four to six paravertebral injections of ropivacaine (39 patients) or saline (38 patients).

After six or more years, the researchers found that local or metastatic recurrence occurred in 13 percent of the ropivacaine group and in 37 percent of the saline group (risk ratio, 0.35; P &#61; 0.024). Breast cancer-related mortality was significantly lower in the ropivacaine versus the saline group (risk ratio, 0.32). Opioid consumption was significantly lower for patients without cancer recurrence versus those with recurrence (P &#61; 0.016).

"It has been theorized that the long-term effect of anesthetic method, drugs used, and the pain therapy applied after surgery can influence how the disease progresses -- whether the cancer comes back or the patient dies," Carlsson said in a statement.

This content is reviewed regularly and is updated when new and relevant evidence is made available. This information is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider prior to starting any new treatment or with questions regarding a medical condition.

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